UW Wyoming Family Practice Awarded Funding to Expand Substance Use Treatment

The University of Wyoming Family Practice Residency Program and Clinic at Casper, also known as Wyoming Family Practice, has been awarded $255,236 to expand integrated substance use disorder treatment, harm reduction resources and preventative care services in central Wyoming.

This funding is made available due to the One Wyoming opioid settlement fund sponsored through the city of Casper and the Wyoming Department of Health.

Funding is to be expended during a one-year period, with the completion of specific goals toward expanding and enhancing a comprehensive, integrated model of care aimed at addressing substance use disorders; increasing harm reduction resources; and improving access to essential primary and preventative services for vulnerable populations across central Wyoming.

Beth Robitaille, a board-certified family physician and designated institutional operator with the Graduate Medical Education Department in the UW College of Health Sciences, will serve as the primary investigator (PI) for the project. Robitaille outlines major goals she and her team hope to accomplish with this additional funding to support and expand substance-use treatment services.

"The opioid epidemic was instigated by misinformation regarding prescription opioid medication safety from the pharmaceutical industry in the early 2000s and is now further propelled by nonprescription substances such as fentanyl and kratom," Robitaille says. "It affects all communities and families from all walks of life. Evidence-based treatment with medications, such as suboxone, helps patients get their lives back. Our physicians in training receive excellent experience in MOUD (medication for opioid use disorder) and will be able to continue these services in their future practices after graduation."

Dr. Caroline Kirsch, an associate designated institutional operator and a clinical professor with GME, and Jaime Hornecker, a clinical professor with the UW School of Pharmacy, will serve as co-PIs, each with over 20 years of academic health care education and community health center practice experience with vulnerable populations.

"In addition to expanding services for vulnerable patients and improving community health, this award will support team-based training for physicians, pharmacists, nurses and other health professionals to improve care for people with substance use disorders," adds Hornecker. "By bringing multiple health disciplines together, this collaborative approach can expand medication access; promote safe prescribing and use; and help patients stay engaged in treatment and recovery."

"This award reflects the University of Wyoming's commitment to addressing one of the most pressing public health challenges facing our state," says Patrick Hardigan, dean of the College of Health Sciences. "By expanding integrated, evidence-based substance use disorder treatment and harm reduction services through Wyoming Family Practice, we are strengthening access to care for vulnerable populations while preparing the next generation of health professionals to deliver compassionate, team-based care. This investment will have a meaningful and lasting impact on the health of individuals, families and communities across central Wyoming."

Operating since 1977, Wyoming Family Practice has served as an academic medical training site for family medicine and geriatric physicians. Wyoming Family Practice has been a vital health care safety net for Natrona County and the surrounding rural and frontier communities for nearly 50 years.

Wyoming Family Practice's MOUD and addiction services are led by a board-certified addiction psychiatrist with over 30 years of practice and complemented by the family medicine team, an addiction counselor, a peer support specialist and a licensed clinical social worker.

Since launching its MOUD and addiction services in 2019 with Health Resources and Services Administration Substance Use Disorder-Mental Health grant support, Wyoming Family Practice has developed a robust, multidisciplinary team that integrates primary care, addiction and mental health services, oral health and social services. The MOUD team provides intake visits; three weekly MOUD clinics; and weekly team care plan meetings to discuss and coordinate care.

For information on health care services offered through Wyoming Family Practice, visit https://www.uwfmrpcasper.com/.